


an in-depth study of nocturnal confessions

by Rustyanklebraclet



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Coming Out, Gen, Internalized Homophobia, not really that angsty tbh
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-05 21:53:50
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,018
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25542406
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rustyanklebraclet/pseuds/Rustyanklebraclet
Summary: “Britta? Did I wake you up?”“What the fuck do you think?”“Sorry,” he says. He sounds a little afraid, and she softens.“It’s fine, I guess,” she pauses, considering this “okay, it’s possibly fine, depending on why you called.”“I, uh, I did something.”“Troy, I don’t have time for this. Did something as in you’re calling me from jail? Because you know as well as I do that I don’t have bail money.”“Did something as in I need to talk to a friend and my only other option is Jeff, who also isn’t really an option.”
Relationships: Troy Barnes & Britta Perry, Troy Barnes/Abed Nadir
Comments: 10
Kudos: 181





	an in-depth study of nocturnal confessions

**Author's Note:**

> so i've had this scene sitting in my drive for ages, the idea just came to me randomly and i wrote like 70% of it and just left it in my community folder like "i'll use this some time" (i have alot of those in my drive, actually, random scenes that i think are cool but ill probably never use) and i realized it could probably just be its own thing.
> 
> if you didn't read the tags, a very mild warning for internalized homophobia. it's pretty tame, but if youre especially sensitive (which is fine!) then it could bother you.
> 
> takes place i at some point between season three and four i think. troy and britta arent/havent been together but 03.14 is referenced, although it doesn't really matter tbh.

Britta Perry does not consider herself a perfect person. Though she does think that Shirley's judgment of her is based on the wrong things and overly harsh.

Because while she doesn’t think that she’s perfect, she also tries not to be too hard on herself (though she rarely succeeds). And she thinks that she is deserving of certain things.

One of those things, for example, is not getting woken up at three in the morning on a Saturday to her phone ringing, displaying  _ Troy _ .

She frowns at it, and then picks it up, coughing as she mumbles a groggy “Hello?”

“Britta? Did I wake you up?”

“What the fuck do you think?”

“Sorry,” he says. He sounds a little afraid, and she softens.

“It’s fine, I guess,” she pauses, considering this “okay, it’s possibly fine, depending on why you called.”

“I, uh, I did something.”

“Troy, I don’t have time for this. Did something as in you’re calling me from jail? Because you know as well as I do that I don’t have bail money.”

“Did something as in I need to talk to a friend and my only other option is Jeff, who also isn’t really an option.”

Britta’s awake, now.

“Yeah, okay, I’m here.”

“Yeah, so am i.”

“What?”

“I’m outside your building. Can you come let me in?”

Ten minutes later, they’re on Britta’s couch. Britta’s wearing a robe over her pyjamas, and she’s pretty sure Troy is wearing the same clothes he was when she saw him a little over twelve hours prior.

Troy hasn’t said a word since he thanked her when she opened the front door for him, and she’s starting to get worried. She sits forward, leans into his space but doesn’t touch him, and tries to be gentle without patronizing him when she speaks.

“You wanna tell me what happened?”

Troy nods, but stays silent. The silence carries on for another minute or so, and Britta starts to really worry.

“Troy, I want to help, but I need you to work with me. Can you at least tell me what this is about?”

“Me, mostly. But Abed too. And sort of… both of us at the same time?”

Britta frowns. God knows they don’t need another pillow war.

“Did you have a fight?”

“The opposite, I guess?”

Her frown deepens. “What does that mean?”

“It means, uh,” Troy sighs, fumbling with his hands and avoiding eye contact “we kissed.”

“Oh,” she says, rather dumbly. She’s not sure what she’s  _ supposed _ to say. For all of her allyship, she’s never actually been in this situation. “Okay, you kissed. Then what?”

“Well, uh,” he shifts “we didn’t  _ just  _ kiss.”

Britta nods, expecting Troy to say more. He doesn’t, though, just sits on her couch and stares forward. Walter jumps up and sits next to him, and Troy absentmindedly reaches over to scratch the back of his head. Walter purrs, and Britta clears her throat.

“Uh… Troy?”

Troy startles, and turns to her. “Sorry.”

“It’s fine, just, what exactly is the issue? Because you showed up at my apartment completely unprompted at three in the morning, and I’m happy to talk, but I need a little more information”

Troy looks away, takes a deep breath, and then says, very slowly, “Britta… I’m gay.”

Britta waits for him to continue, but he’s trapped in his own head again. “I kind of figured.”

Troy looks alarmed “You did? how?”

“Well, I don’t know if you know this, but when a man willingly sleeps with other men, that man generally isn’t considered heterosexual.”

“Oh. Right.”

“Troy?” Britta says, softly “is that why you’re here? Are you… upset? About being gay?”

Troy scrubs his hands across his face with a long-suffering exhale. Walter, upset about the loss of Troy's hand behind his ear, meows insistently, and Troy goes back to scratching him.

“I don’t know? Like, I've known that I had feelings for Abed for a few months, but I think I probably liked him before that. And it never really bothered me.”

“But it does now?”

“I think so? But I’m not like, angry or something. I just feel… weird? And sort of like I’m going to throw up, but not in a bad way? But also in a really bad way. Does that make sense?”

“Not at all.”

Troy frowns and Britta backtracks, reaching over to take his hand.

“But it doesn’t have to. Not to me, anyway. Have you talked to Abed about any of this?”

“I think he guessed most of it. The gist, anyways. I told him I had to go for a walk and clear my head, and he told me that he understood and I could take my time. That’s how I ended up here.”

“Troy?”

“Yeah?”

“Do you want a hug?”

Troy nods, and Britta leans forward, wrapping Troy in her arms. She thinks he might cry, sort of expects him to, but he doesn’t. He just takes a very long inhale, and rests his head on her shoulder.

Hearing it sort of makes her wish he was crying.

“Can I stay here tonight?”

“It isn’t really night anymore, but yeah. Of course. As long as you don’t mind the cats.”

She feels Troy shake his head, and they separate.

“It’ll be okay,” she says to him. He nods like he wants to believe her, which feels like a start.

She finds him a pillow and blanket, and it’s not long before he’s passed out on her couch.

She debates whether to text Annie or Abed. She doesn't know how Abed will react, but doesn’t want to involve Annie in Troy and Abed's business without them knowing.

She settles on Abed.

**Britta Perry, 3:18 am:** _ troy is here nd styng the nite _

**Abed Nadir, 3:21 am:** _ okay. thank you for telling me. _

**Abed Nadir, 3:21 am:** _ is he doing better? _

**Britta Perry, 3:22 am:** _ i think u need to have that convo w/ him _

**Abed Nadir, 3:23 am:** _ fair enough. _

**Abed Nadir, 3:24 am:** _ thank you. _

**Britta Perry, 3:24 am:** _ yeha whtevr _

**Author's Note:**

> come talk to me on [Tumblr](https://readandwritesilver.tumblr.com/) or [Twitter](https://twitter.com/HOMINGPIGE0N) if you want
> 
> As always, any and all feedback is appreciated :)
> 
> Much love, Clover <3


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